Abandoned
by Freeverse
Summary: A darker fic. Mystique recalls the torture she went through in Area 51. Not for Cyclops fans!


_**Abandoned  
**_

**Author's Note: **This is a dark fic. It's between the episodes and right before "Blind Alley." This is a story about the torture Mystique went through at Area 51 and why she wanted revenge so much. She obviously wanted to kill Cyclops in that episode, so I thought I'd give her much more of a reason than her obvious dislike for the boy. It's rated R just to be safe for violence, language, and torture that might not sit well for a younger audience. Please review.

* ~ *  


Raven Darkholme watched Scott Summers walk away. She wrapped her fingers around the vent, pulling and shaking it with frantic anger. "You don't know what you're doing, Summers," she spat.  
  
He ignored her threat and kept walking.  
  
"You'll be sorry! When I get out of here you'll never see the light of day again! Do you hear me? You'll never find Xavier without me!"  
  
She growled in rage, shaking the vent that was now her cage. He was gone and she was trapped in a place where only God knew what would happen to her.  
  
"There!" a man shouted to a few guards as they an towards Raven. "She's the mutant that freed them all! She's the one that knocked me out!"  
  
"Funny thing she's still here and the rest of her friends are gone," he continued.  
  
Mystique threw the man into a wall, and began to run down the hall. The guards only aimed their weapons in her direction. Raven looked around for a way out. The pounding of her heart was deafening. She turned just as something pierced her neck. She was slipping and the world around her blurred like rain cascading down a window. Raven slumped to the ground, unconscious.  
  
* ~ *  
  
  
When Mystique woke up, she was in another room, lying on a cold metal operating table. Panic rose inside her and she tried to get up, but she was bound tightly to the table. "...Why?" she asked hoarsely.  
  
A blonde, male in a lab coat smirked. "Because you're a mutant. And since your friends are all gone, you're the only one left to experiment on." He turned to his female colleague. "She's an odd-looking one, isn't she?"  
  
"Put the collar on her, Doctor Wyatt," Trask instructed from behind the two doctors. "Let's see how comfortable she is without her powers to save her."  
  
The doctor secured the metal device around her neck. Raven struggled violently, but the woman tightened her straps even more. Wyatt pressed a button and Raven felt like her entire being was being sucked from her body. Her body went through convulsions as she cried out in rage and pain.  
  
"Interesting..." Trask said. "She seems more affected by it than most of the mutants. She and Test #24... Wolverine, wasn't it? They have similar reactions."  
  
"Doctor, look!"  
  
Doctor Wyatt glanced at Mystique. His eyes widened in bewilderment and surprise. "She looks human. Her appearance is apparently part of the mutation."  
  
Raven looked at her hands. They weren't blue anymore, but fair. The operating tray beside her reflected her strange face. Without her mutation, she looked normal with red hair, brown eyes, and most importantly, fair skin. The person staring back at her seemed like a stranger.  
  
"What's even more fascinating is that she seems to be aging. It's a slow process, but she seems older than what she started out to be."  
  
"When were you born?" Trask asked.  
  
"It's rude to ask a lady her age," she spat.  
  
"Oh, you're so full of spirit now," he mused. "But you won't be for long. We have ways of stripping away your pride here, Raven Darkholme."  
  
"How did you know?" she inquired weakly.  
  
"We have files on every mutant we've come across. Yours has been one of the more elusive ones, but we acquired enough information to know your name."  
  
"I won't tell you anything," Raven snarled. "You sick, twisted man. Why would I give you what you want?"  
  
Dr. Wyatt was all too happy to show her. He reached for a pole-like device and pressed it against her skin. He twisted it and an intense shock ran through her body.  
  
"Now will you cooperate?"  
  
"I have nothing to say."  
  
Shock.  
  
Raven was weak, but she still wouldn't tell. She glared. "I kill people like you everyday," she informed him. "You vermin are the reason I chose to destroy."  
  
"I have all day," he told her with a chuckle.  
  
Shock. Shock, shock, shock.  
  
"Why won't you tell us your age?" Trask asked. "Do you not understand the question? Is it to hard for you to answer? All I'm asking is when you were born."  
  
Shock, shock, shock, shock.  
  
"If you won't tell us I could always leave this collar on you. You would wither and die with old age, wouldn't you? You're an old woman, aren't you Raven?"  
  
Shock, shock, shock.  
  
Raven whimpered in pain. "I was born some where around 1813. I wasn't exactly a child who had a celebrated birthday. I can only guess."  
  
"How is that even possible?" Dr. Wyatt asked. "You're far too old to look so young. You should be dead!"  
  
"Part of my powers allows me to hide my age. In addition to that, a low healing factor allows me to remain healthy. Although, for rocket scientists, I figured you'd know that by now." 

"A 'healing fact,' hmmm?" Trask repeated with a sly smile. "I'd like to see how that works. Wyatt, turn the collar off." He turned to the dark-haired woman. "Dr. Eden, please bring me the serums."

Raven gritted her teeth in pain as her powers came over her like a tidal wave. "What are you planning to do to me?" she demanded.

Dr. Eden returned with five vials of unknown liquid. "Here you are, Sir. The needles are on the tray."

He grinned viciously. "I've been told some mutants react differently to various substances. Besides, I want to induce as much pain as possible."

She struggled against the straps. "What are you talking about?"

The needle pierced her arm. It felt like fire was spreading through her entire body. Another needle was driven through her skin. She grew inhumanly cold and numb.

Dr. Wyatt handed Trask a scalpel. "I think you'll need this."

The man took the tool and ripped open part of Raven's shirt with his free hand. The other hand brought the blade down to slice open her abdomen.

Mystique gasped, her nails digging into the cold metal of the table and even into her own flesh. The wound hurt more than anything she had ever experienced before. She swallowed to keep from crying out.

"Go ahead and scream. No one will hear you. Besides, I rather like it when women scream."

She spit on him. "Fuck you!"

Trask wiped it away and laughed. "Oh, how predictable. How delightful." He cut her again. Raven squirmed in agony. "I have waited all my life to see a wanton murderess and mutant like you be so... defenseless."

"...I'm not... _defenseless_..." she said, though her voice was no louder than a murmur.

The blade cut deeper this time. It burnt like an inferno and the blood that ran down her skin stung like hot wax. She wanted to beg them to stop the torture, but Raven refused to lower herself to that level.

"Give her the C-13," Trask ordered.

Dr. Wyatt injected the drug into her veins. "You see, Ms. Darkholme," he explained, "this drug reacts to the other serums in a most peculiar way in regular humans. We'd like to see what happens when it mixes in mutant blood."

Trask nodded. "We're very interested in your reaction."

"Sir, are you sure this is necessary?" Dr. Eden inquired. She gave Mystique a half-sympathetic glance. "She's been through enough today."

"If you're too squeamish, Louise, you can always leave."

She shrunk away. "No. I need to record this."

"Good girl," Trask said as Dr. Wyatt injected more serum into Raven's bloodstream.

Raven screamed, desperately attempting to free herself of the restraints. The screams were deafening.

"Where's your healing factor?" Trask mocked, pressing the blade into her stomach. "Or can't you heal yourself in all this pain?"

She grimaced. _I can't. The pain is too much. Even if I could, it's too slow to get rid of these drugs and wounds right now. It might take hours. _"You're sick. Completely sick."

He chuckled and turned to his two colleagues. "Make sure the collar's turned on to prevent her escape. Clean this place up and leave her for the night."

"But Sir!" Eden objected. "Won't you give her time to heal herself? You must at least give her that!"

"No," he stated simply. "She deserves to suffer." 

As he started towards the door, Raven's hatred raged above the excruciating pain she felt. "You're the one who deserves to suffer, you bastard!" she called after him. "I never did anything to you! You did everything to me!"

"I never did anything to you?" he asked, wheeling around. "Why, you did do something, Miss Darkholme. It's very simple, really. You and your kind were spawned into this world. That was reason enough for me to create the Sentinels and it's still reason enough for me to experiment on lowly specimens such as yourself."

She growled. "You'll pay!"

Like Scott did before, he only walked away.

Dr. Wyatt smirked and made sure the collar was securely locked and turned on. Dr. Eden quietly tidied up the room while scribbling a few things down on her files. They left soon after.

Raven was left to whimper and cry in the dark, empty room. The only thoughts that crossed her minds were thoughts of anger and revenge. She wanted retribution on Trask and his followers, but most of all, Scott Summers.

_You left me here to die. If I ever get out, you **will** pay. I'll make sure you never see your family or friends again, EVER. I'll make sure you feel as much pain as I feel. **Nobody** likes to be abandoned._

* ~ *

Love it? Hate it? Let me know! 


End file.
